Pop quiz! What do these items have in common: Apple pie Skunk Lemon Campfire Lilacs Rotting garbage Answer: They all have strong smells. And at least some of those smells probably call up strong memories in your mind. I feel like our sense of smell is one of our most under-appreciated senses. But it’s also […]
The Fourth Annual Inspy Valentine’s Awards
If you’re here, I know two things about you: 1) you love to read, and 2) you love love. And when you put those two things together, you get the Fourth Annual Inspy Valentine’s Awards. I founded (read: made up) these awards a few years ago as a way to share some fun glimpses into […]
Do You Accept the Challenge?
One thing that fascinates me every new year is the number of reading goals and challenges that pop up everywhere. I’d love to know whether you participate! Let’s do a survey to find out! I admit I don’t set a reading goal, mostly because I think it would stress me out if I fell behind. […]
12 Days of Christmas…Reader Style!
Around our house, the Christmas music has been playing since the beginning of November. And I’m not tired of it yet. There are songs I could listen to all year (looking at you “Go Tell It On the Mountain” and “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel”). There are other songs that I skip every time (I […]
May I Have Your Autograph
I was in fourth grade the first time I ever got a book that had been signed by the author. Children’s author Barbara M. Joosse had come to visit our school to talk about writing (and I even got to work with her on my own story). At the end of her visit, I was […]
Just the Highlights
Psst. Over here. I have a secret. You might love me for it. Or you might want to throw a book at me. Okay, here it is … I don’t only write books. I also write in books. Both electronic books and (gulp) print books. I can’t remember the first time I did it. I […]
When Real Life Sneaks In & #Giveaway
You know what’s funny? After writing more than a dozen books, I sometimes think that I must have mined everything from my own life that I possibly could by now. But then I’m writing along and BOOM—there’s something from my life on the page. Again. Without revealing any spoilers, I thought I’d share a few […]
Story Time
It’s inevitable: at the beginning of every month, I wonder, “How did it get to be [fill in name of month here] already? I am constantly marveling at (maybe more like lamenting) how fast time passes. I mean, summer just started, and now my kids start school next week? Or, harder still, my oldest was […]
Signs you may have T-TBR…and what to do about it
I have to confess something to you: I have a problem. You’ve heard of a TBR (to be read), right? Well, my problem is related. It happens when a TBR grows and grows until it becomes T-TBR (Toppling-TBR). Symptoms include: 1) Your bookshelves are so full that you have to arrange the books two rows […]
To Finish or Not to Finish?
Does anyone else remember the Ramona Quimby books by Beverly Cleary? I devoured those books in probably third grade or so…and there’s one part I still remember today. Ramona had to write a book report, only she didn’t really like the book she’d read, so she got up in front of the class and ended […]
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